The legal responsiblities of the person/company who owns a road and footpaths

I live in a Cul-De-Sac of 20 flats that are mostly owned by a housing association but some are owner occupied.

The road and the pavements in the cul-de-sac are not owned by the Housing Association. They got their solicitor to check but they definitely don't own the road, somehow they managed to buy the houses but not the road and footpaths. They do not belong to the council either.

The road is in very bad repair and getting worse by the year. The local tenants and residents group are planning to find out from the land registry just who does own the road and footpaths as it must belong to someone.

Does anybody know if whoever does actually own the road and footpaths has a legal responsibility to keep the them in good and safe repair?
Even though they don't own any property in the street?

If its not owned by the council or the HA it must be the builders that still own the footpaths.

I believe the council have to buy them off the builders once places become residential, but council can refuse if the paths don't comform to their regulations. I wonder if this is a dispute that never got resolved. How old are the buildings?

3 of the buildings were built in 1928, the two other buildings were built in 1976.

We think, haven't checked it out yet, that when the 2 buildings were built in 1976 they were owned by a company who then sold out to the Housing Association in 1982.

The land was bought by the Church Army housing Ltd in 1924 and the first 3 blocks of flats were built by them in 1928. It is possible that they still own the road and footpaths or it's possible that they may have sold them on to the company who built the newer flats in 1976.

Whoever it is though the HA do not own the road and footpaths and have no responsibility. and the council don't want to know until they are up to standard.

Sobernow, Unadopted I think is the word you are looking for. That's what our road is, unadopted by the council and doesn't appear to belong to anybody. I'm looking into that though as surely somebody, somewhere must own it.

The Ha who own some of the houses, others are already bought, are willing to cover the share of the tennants if the owners will pay their share as it states in their deeds that they must pay 1/20th. We're not quite sure though why the Ha are so willing to pay if they don't have any responsibility, probably just to get us to stop moaning about it.

The council don't want to know about it until it's been brought up to standard and then they will adopt the road.